Queen Elizabeth II will be remembered for many things, among them her devotion to service and love of country. But as The Today Show reports, long before she became Britain’s monarch, Elizabeth had already displayed a different devotion and love — for animals.
The dearly departed royal, who died September 8 at the age of 96, had a passion for horses and dogs which began when she was a child. It was Elizabeth’s father, King George VI, who first brought what would become a long line of Corgis into the family in 1933.
That first dog, named Dookie, soon had a companion named Jane, which instilled the future queen’s fondness for the breed. When Elizabeth turned 18, she was given her own Corgi, her beloved Susan, and nearly all of her dogs after that point were directly descended from Susan — even those of a whole other canine breed Elizabeth had a role in creating.
Along with her Corgis, the queen had several Dorgis (sometimes spelled Dorgies), which she reportedly engineered many years ago, according to Vanity Fair, by breeding one of her Corgis with a dachshund belonging to her late sister, Princess Margaret.
Her affection for the dogs was great, and only seemed matched by the love she held for horses.
According to an article published in The Sydney Morning Herald in 1937, “(King George VI) has always been anxious that Princess Elizabeth shall be a good horse-woman. On her third birthday she was given a little Shetland pony, Daisy, with whom she had made friends in Scotland.”
Throughout her life, Elizabeth showed an open interest for race horses, and could be seen shedding her typical reserved demeanor when cheering on a favorite steed at a race. The Queen also loved both show horses and military equine alike, and she was often seen reaching out to touch any horse in arm’s distance to her.
Earlier this year, to mark what turned out to be her final birthday, the queen reiterated her lifelong passion for animals by posing for a portrait with her two Fell ponies by her side. Long live the Queen… and her enduring, endearing love for animals.
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